Cooling system for rock ripper tip

ABSTRACT

A cooling system for cooling the cutting edge of an impact type ripper tip includes a source of liquid coolant under pressure and conduit means for supplying the coolant to a spray head mounted below and behind the ripper tip in a position to distribute liquid coolant to the lower surface of the tip behind the cutting edge. The spray head is detachably mounted directly behind the ripper tip and projects downward beyond the lower surface of the tip.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to impact rock rippers and pertainsparticularly to cooling means for the cutting tip of such rippers.

Mechanical rippers have been used for cutting and ripping relativelysoft weathered layered or previously blasted rocks. However, suchrippers have not been efficient or useful in ripping hard rocks andpavement or the like.

One of the major problems with the use of such rippers is the highforces that must be induced in rock and similar hard material to causeit to fracture. This necessitates the delivery of very high forces andenergy to the face of the rock or other material to be fractured orseparated. Mechanical impact rippers, which are capable of deliveringvery high forces to the tip of such rippers has been recently developed.Rippers of this type are covered, for example, in U.S. Pat. No.3,770,322, issued Nov. 6, 1973 to Cobb, et al. and entitled "Apparatusfor Fracture of Material in Situ with Stored Inertial Energy."

Because of the very high energies delivered to the point of such rippersand the very high speeds of the ripper tip upon the delivery of energythereto excessive heat and wear to the ripper tip becomes a majorproblem. The supplying of a coolant to the ripper tip presents a problemof how to effectively supply sufficient coolant to the tip in a reliablemanner. The placement passages in the tip itself can weaken it andresult in early failure of the tip for that reason. Also, thepositioning of the orifices for supplying the liquid to the surface ofthe tip must be so located to supply the liquid to the proper areas ofthe surface. Also, such openings must be so located as to avoid theproblem of clogging of the passages.

An example of the prior art approach to the supplying of a liquid to acutting blade, is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,685,592, issued Aug. 22, 1972to Claude M. Frisbee and entitled "Fluid Cushioned Dozer Blade". In thatpatent a liquid of fluid film is supplied to the front surface of adozer blade to reduce friction and prevent the adhesion of soil to themoldboard portion of the blade.

Other patents known to the .[.applicant.]. .Iadd.applicants.Iaddend.which are for the purpose of supplying a liquid behind a bladeare as follows: U.S. Pat. No. 2,713,299, issued July 19, 1955 to Shager,et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 2,988,026, issued June 3, 1961 to Heckathorn; andU.S. Pat. No. 3,294,181, issued Dec. 27, 1966 to Binder. These threepatents are directed to the problem of distributing a liquid fertilizeror the like in a furrow behind an agricultural plow blade. They are notconcerned with the problem of cooling the cutting blade or tip.

A system for supplying water to drum-type rotary coal cutters isdisclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 3,827,755, issued August 6, 1974 to Allen.

SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

.[.In accordance with the primary aspect of the present invention, animpact ripping apparatus is provided with cooling means for distributinga flow of coolant to the ripping tip in thin-shaped spray pattern to theundersurface thereof. A spray head for distributing the coolant islocated behind and projects downward beyond the lower surface of theripper tip..]..Iadd.

In one aspect of the present invention, the cutting tool of an earthcutting apparatus, having a cutting tool terminating forwardly at acutting edge, is provided with means for spraying and directly impingingpressurized coolant across the width of a bottom surface of the cuttingtool and the width of the cutting edge. The means is located betweenplanes having side surfaces of the cutting tool lying therein.

In another aspect of this invention, the cutting apparatus is employedon an impact rock ripping machine and includes a support member havingthe cutting tool or tip mounted thereon.

In another aspect of this invention, the support member comprises ashank having an adapter mounting the tip on the shank and a spray headmounted beneath the shank. .Iaddend.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide cooling meansfor a ripper tip for overcoming the above problems of the prior art.

Another object of the present invention is to provide cooling apparatusfor distributing a liquid coolant to the surface of a rock ripping tipto cool the tip thereof.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a coolingapparatus for supplying a coolant under pressure to the surface of aripper tip in a fan-like pattern to the underside thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The .[.abobve.]. .Iadd.above .Iaddend.and other objects and advantagesof the present invention will become apparent from the followingdescription when read in conjunction with the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of an impact ripper embodying thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a ripper tip with portions broken away toshow details of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view of the ripper tip of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view taken generally along lines IV--IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of an alternate embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 6 is a detailed view in section of the spray head taken from thevicinity of VI of FIG. 5; and,

FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of the spray head of FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Turning now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1 there isillustrated an impact-type rock ripper generally designated by thenumeral 10 connected to and towed behind a vehicle such as acrawler-type tractor indicated generally by the numeral 12. The impactrock ripper 10 is of the type such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.3,770,322, for example, and includes a frame 14 supporting a housing 16in which an impact mechanism is housed. The impact mechanism delivershigh impact blows to the shank of the ripper, with the energy beingdelivered by the tip to the rack. The apparatus is supported from thetractor 12 by suitable linkage arrangement including a link 18 and apair of lift and tilt cylinders 20 and 22 controlled in the usual mannerby the operator for controlling the depth and angle of attack of aripper tip.

The impact apparatus, contained within the housing 16, includes amechanical impact developing apparatus such as that disclosed in theabove-mentioned patent for developing and delivering impact blows to aripper shank 24 which is mounted to the housing and frame assembly in amanner to permit to and fro motion. The shank 24 in the usual embodimentincludes a detachably mounted adapter and shin guard assembly 26including a rearwardly directed socket 28 for receiving a forwardextending member 30 of the shank 24. A pin 32 extending through atransverse bore through the spocket and plug member 30 retains theadapter 26 on the shank. The adapter includes a forwardly directedsocket 34 for receiving a rearward extension 36 of a substantiallywedged-shaped ripper tip 38.

The ripper tip 38 is detachably mounted to the ripper shank 24 by meansof the adapter 26 for ease of replacement. This arrangement permits theripper .[.tips.]. .Iadd.tip .Iaddend.to take the wear and be replacedupon excessive wear without undue wear and a necessity of replacing theshank 24. The tip 38 itself is a substantially wedge shape having arelatively sharp forward cutting edge 40 formed by the converging of.Iadd.top or .Iaddend.upper and .Iadd.bottom or .Iaddend.lower surfaces42 and 44 which may be substantially .[.plane.]. .Iadd.planar.Iaddend.but are preferably slighty curved.

Turning back.[., back,.]. for a moment.[.,.]. to FIG. 1 it will beappreciated that the point 40 of the tip 38 will extend downward towardthe earth formation in a preferred arrangement for engagement with theface of a hard rock formation 45. It will also be appreciated thatdebris, rock and materials cut from the formation will normally move upthe face 42 and be pushed aside as the ripper tip and shank progressesforward through a formation. For this reason, it is difficult toposition a coolant distributing nozzle or head to distribute coolantalong the face 42 without providing passages .[.witin.]. .Iadd.within.Iaddend.the tip 38 itself. The disadvantage of providing .[.pssages.]..Iadd.passages .Iaddend.within the tip 38 is the problem of weakeningthe tip thus, resulting in early failure of the tip for that reason.Another problem of so providing such nozzle would be that the materialflowing along the upper surface thereof would tend to clog the nozzleand pevent the distribution of coolant thereto. In the normalarrangement, for cutting, the lower face .Iadd.or bottom surface.Iaddend.44 would normally be slightly tilted downward such that thepoint 40 would be slightly below the surface thus eliminating drag ofthe surface 44 across the face of the formation.

The applicants have discovered this to be an ideal location for thedistributor head for distributing a flow of coolant across the underside44 of the tip 38 for the purpose of cooling the entire tip. In thislocation, the stream of fluid across the surface of the tip encountersthe least amount of interference from debris and the like from movementof the tip through an earth formation. It was also discovered that anideal location for the distributing nozzle is closely adjacent anddirectly behind the ripper tip itself within the support structure ofthe shank or the adapter. Where an adapter is used, such as in theillustrated embodiment, the spray head should be located within theadapter as closely adjacent the tip as possible. A suitable coolant,such as water, oil or an emulsion thereof, is supplied under pressure tothe ripper tip 38 by suitable coolant supply system.

This system in accordance with the present invention includes a suitabletank or reservoir 46 for containing a suitable supply of coolant fromwhich the coolant is drawn by means of a pump 48 and supplied underpressure by suitable conduit means 50 to a selector valve 52. Theselector valve 52 is operative to direct the fluid either back along areturn line 54 to the tank 46 or along a supply line 56 to a suitablepassage 58 within the shank 24 for supply along a passage 60 in theadapter 26 to the spray head or nozzles 62. Suitable coupling means withsuitable sealing means 64 is provided at the juncture of the adapter 26with the shank 24. The spray head itself is of a generally semi-frustoconical configuration having a sloping wall 66 and a semi-cylindricalforward or front wall 68 in which is formed a plurality of orifices 70so arranged and located to distribute coolant across the face of tip 38in a fan-like pattern extending up to just behind the front cutting edge40. The spray head or distributing head 62 includes a stepped bore 72extending from the face thereof upward toward the top and communicatingwith the nozzles or orifices 70. The open bottom communicates thepassage 60 when in position.

The spray head 62 is mounted within a slot formed in the lower forwardsurface of the adapter 26. This slot is of a generally semi-frustoconical in shape with an open front opening toward the tip 40. This slotis formed at the juncture of the adapter 26 and the ripper tip 38. Theslot begins at face 76. This slot generally designated by the numeral 74begins at the front face 76 of the adapter 26 and extends backwardtherefrom with sloping walls 78 defining the generally semi-frustoconical configuration for receiving and engaging the similarly shapedwalls 66 of the spray head 62. The slot 74 has an open front to permitexposure of the face 68 of the spray head 62. This slot 74 is formed ina downwardly projecting lower face 88 of the adapter 26,. This face 88extends downward below the surface or face 44 of the tip 38. This mountsthe spray head 62 above the face or surface 44 to permit the spraynozzles 70 to direct a spray coolant across the face 44. The sparynozzle 62 is detachably mounted within the slot 74 and in such a mannerthat once inserted the mounting of the tip 38 retains the spray head inplace by means of shoulder 80. Suitable seal means comprising a sealring 82 mounted within a radial groove or slot 84 of the bore 72 sealsthe bore 72 against the lower surface 86 of slot 74 and thereby sealscommunication of the bore 60 with the bore 72 and communication thereofwith the orifices 70.

Referring to FIG. 5 a rock ripper of the type mounted on an excavator isshown in operative position. Rock rippers or breakers of this type aremore fully described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,145, issued Aug. 23, 1973,to Cobb, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 3,922,017, issued Dec. 16, 1974, toCobb.

The cooling means in this embodiment includes a fluid or coolant supplysystem as shown in FIG. 2 for .[.supplyibg.]. .Iadd.supplying.Iaddend.the coolant to the ripper tip. The impact ripper or breakermechanism generally designated by the numeral 90 is supported bysuitable support or mounting frame means 92 from a jib 94 and bracket 96of a hydraulic excavator or backhoe. A ripper tip 98 is mounted on amovable shank 100 to which is delivered impact blows by a suitableimpact mechanism. A rock guard 102 is mounted just behind the shank 100and shields portions of the impact mechanism from rocks.

The cooling system of this embodiment includes a spray head indicatedgenerally by the numeral 104 mounted in a suitable position such as onrock guard 102 for directing a stream of cooling fluid to the.[.underride.]. .Iadd.underside or bottom surface .Iaddend.of the tip98.

The spray head as best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7 comprises a substantiallycylindrical body 106 having an inlet passageway 108 communicating with acentral chamber or passageway 110. A cap 112 fits over one end of thehousing 106 and includes a central chamber or passageway 114 incommunication with the passageway 110. A plurality of spray nozzles oroutlets 116, 118 and 120 extend at an angle from central chamber 114 forcommunicating from the chamber and to the lower side of tip 98. Anynumber of the nozzles may be provided as needed.

The chamber 114 is formed by a series of bores of a decreasing diameterforming a stepped bore and defining a first annular shoulder 122engaging the face of body member 106, a second shoulder 124 engaging anannular seal 126 for sealing the chambers 110 and 114 against leakage offluid.

The spray head is held in place such as by a pair of bolts 128 whichextend through bores 130 and 132 in opposite sides of the cap 112. Fluidintroduced into the spray head by way of inlet 108 flows by way ofchambers 110 and 114 to the outlets 116-120.

A cooling fluid such as water is communicated from a suitable source byway of a suitable conduit such as a flexible line 134. The line 134 isconnected in a suitable manner to inlet 108 and sealed thereto such asby a seal 136.

From the above description, it is seen that we have provided a rockripper of the impact type with suitable cooling means for thedistribution of a flow of coolant to the ripper in a fan-like pattern tomaintain cooling thereof. .Iadd.Spray heads 62 and 104 thus providemeans for spraying and directly impinging pressurized coolant across thefull widths of the bottom surfaces and cutting edges of the respectivecutting tools or ripper tips. The cutting edge of each standard tipterminates forwardly at the juncture of the pair of side surfaces, thetop surface, and the bottom surface thereof. The side surfaces lie in apair of laterally spaced imaginary planes and the spray head is locatedbetween such planes. .Iaddend.

While the present invention has been described with respect to specificembodiment, it is to be understood that numerous changes andmodifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. In an impact rock ripping machine having anelongated and downwardly extending ripping shank with a forwardlyextending .[.rip.]. .Iadd.tip .Iaddend.mounted on said machine forreceiving intermittent impact blows for driving the shank and tip in aforward direction at intermittent high speed intervals the improvementcomprising:cooling means for distributing a flow of coolant to said tipfor controlling the temperature thereof comprising a spray head mountedbeneath said shank and disposed intermediate lateral sides thereof andbehind said tip and having a plurality of spray openings positionedthereon to direct a spray pattern of coolant to an underside of said tipand fully thereacross; an adapter having a first socket receiving aforwardly extending projection of said shank in mounting relationshiptherein and a second socket having said tip detachably mounted therein;and spray head mounting means on said adapter mounting said spray headthereon, adjacent to said tip.
 2. The machine of claim 1 wherein saidcooling means further comprises:a pressurized source of fluidizedcoolant; and means for communicating coolant from said source to saidspray head.
 3. The machine of claim 1 wherein said spray head mountingmeans comprises:a slot having sloping sidewalls formed in the lowerforward edge of said adapter receiving said spray head therebetween;said spray head having sloping side walls engaging corresponding thesloping side walls of said slot for being retained in position thereby.4. The machine of claim 3 wherein:said spray head projects downwardbeyond the lower surface of said ripper tip.
 5. The machine of claim 3wherein said slot is semi-frusto conical in shape with an open frontopening toward said tip; and,said spray head is semi-frusto conical inconfiguration with a semi-cylindrical front face.
 6. The machine ofclaim 5 wherein said openings are formed in said semi-cylindrical frontface; andsaid face is exposed at the open front of said slot and extendsbeyond the surface of said tip.
 7. The machine of claim 1 wherein:saidmachine includes a housing supporting said ripping shank for movementrelative thereto.[.; and, said spray head is mounted on said housing.]..8. The machine of claim 1 wherein said spray head further comprises:afirst cylindrial body having an inlet passage communicating with acentral chamber; and, a cap having said plurality of openings formedtherein and means communicating said openings with said central chamber.9. The machine of claim 1 wherein said tip extends laterally entirelyacross a front side of said adapter.
 10. In an impact rock rippingmachine, a ripping shank,an adapter mounted on a forward end of saidshank, A tip detachably mounted on a forward end of said .[.adapted.]..Iadd.adapter.Iaddend., and cooling means for distributing a flow ofcoolant to said tip for controlling the temperature thereof comprising apressurized source of coolant, a spray head mounted beneath said shankand .[.havng.]. .Iadd.having .Iaddend.a plurality of openings positionedthereon for directing .[.coolabt.]. .Iadd.coolant .Iaddend.forwardly andacross an underside of said tip, means for communicating coolant fromsaid source to said openings, and spray head mounting means comprising aslot having sloping sidewalls formed in said adapter and slopingsidewalls formed on said spray head and engaging the sloping sidewallsformed in said adapter for being retained in position thereby. .Iadd.11. In an earth cutting apparatus having a cutting tool, said cuttingtool having a cutting edge terminating forwardly at the juncture of apair of side surfaces lying in a pair of laterally spaced planes, a topsurface, and a bottom surface of predetermined width and length, theimprovement comprising:means for spraying and directly impingingpressurized coolant across the full width of said bottom surface and thefull width of said cutting edge, said bottom surface being defined asthat portion of the tool in contact with the unsevered earth during acutting operation of said apparatus and said means located between theplanes having said side surfaces lying therein. .Iaddend. .Iadd.
 12. Theapparatus of claim 11 said means includes a single spray head having aplurality of openings positioned thereon. .Iaddend..Iadd.
 13. Theapparatus of claim 12 wherein said spray head is mounted intermediatethe width of said tool. .Iaddend..Iadd.
 14. The apparatus of claim 12further including a guard member disposed rearwardly of said tool andwherein said spray head is mounted on said guard member. .Iaddend..Iadd.
 15. In an impact rock ripping machine a support member having apredetermined width and mounted on said machine, tip means mountedforwardly of said support member for penetrating hard materials andhaving forwardly converging top and bottom surfaces and a pair of sidesurfaces lying in a pair of laterally spaced planes terminating at anarrow cutting edge extending across the full width of said tip means,said cutting edge being at least as wide as the width of said supportmember, and cooling means mounted directly rearwardly of said cuttingedge and fully exposed to said bottom surface for spraying and directlyimpinging pressurized coolant in a fanlike pattern across the full widthof said bottom surface in the plane thereof and directly across the fullwidth of said cutting edge, said cooling means located between theplanes having said side surfaces lying therein. .Iaddend. .Iadd.
 16. Themachine of claim 15 wherein said cooling means includes a single sprayhead having a plurality of openings positioned thereon for directingcoolant towards said cutting edge. .Iadd.
 17. The machine of claim 16wherein said spray head is mounted intermediate the width of said tipmeans. .Iaddend..Iadd.
 18. The machine of claim 16 wherein said supportmember includes an adapter having said tip means detachably mountedthereon and wherein said spray head is mounted on said adapter..Iaddend..Iadd.
 19. The machine of claim 16 wherein said support memberincludes a rock guard disposed rearwardly of said tip means and whereinsaid spray head is mounted on said rock guard. .Iaddend. .Iadd.
 20. Theapparatus of claim 11 further including means for moving said cuttingtool horizontally to engage said cutting edge in cutting contact andsaid bottom surface in contact with said unsevered earth..Iaddend..Iadd.
 21. The machine of claim 15 further including means formoving said shank and said tip means horizontally to engage said cuttingedge in cutting contact and said bottom surface in contact withunsevered earth. .Iaddend.